Quiet Time (and all is well)

My wife is out of town right now and I took the weekend off to watch the kids. We've been having the big time, spending big chunks of the days at the playground and taking walks around the apartment complex. Across the street, there is a new housing development going up. Nothing more than huge piles of dirt right now, it looks not unlike the desert planet of Tatooine from Star Wars, a cool comparison that is not lost on the four-year-old Star Wars fan of the family.

I tried to get that rare night of eight hours of uninterrupted sleep last night to no avail. I tossed and turned in the bed a good four hours before my normal bedtime and finally gave up and came into the living room to watch TV. Usually it's blogs that own my quiet time at night, but I used last night to catch up on a few shows I've been enjoying of late.

DVDs borrowed from the library and watched in their entirety over the course of the last two days:

• The Muppet Show: Season 2
• Entourage: Season 1
• Black Books: Season 1

Comcast On Demand caught me up on the following:

• Hotel Babylon
• Torchwood

Now it's back to the blogs while the kiddos sleep. Well, she naps and he watches Scooby-Doo for "quiet time."

Florida is battling Ole Miss on television early in the fourth with only a three point lead. Georgia travels to Alabama tonight for a contest that I am sure my wife will be following closely, whether or not anyone else at the wedding she is attending is scheduling its events with regard to kickoff time.

Off to read my newest issue of The New Yorker. Anthony Lane writes about Leica cameras. And I wish I was here.

The New York Times' Quotation of the Day

"Jesus said heaven is a place for people of all nations. So if you don’t like Clarkston, you won’t like heaven."

THE REV. PHIL KITCHIN, on the immigrants who have transformed the Clarkston International Bible Church in Georgia.

I knew she went to ABC but I never saw a thing she did there.

Amanda Congdon and ABC Part Ways

When Amanda Congdon received a contract to host a weekly show on ABCNews.com, the 25-year-old was heralded as “the first video blogger to make the jump to a major network” and described herself as “bridging the gap between old and new media.”

That bridge is closed, at least temporarily: Ms. Congdon’s one-year contract isn’t being renewed, ABC confirmed today. ... more>>

I found that I was more partial to the Rocketboom brand than to its host anyway.

What we're watching here at Chez Bez today.

From The Muppet Show Season 2:

They like to pretend that they're Jawas.

Pottery Barn Teen is welcome to furnish my entire home.

One catalog that always gets my full attention is Pottery Barn Teen. Check out this cool shelf/iPod dock.

Daddy Blogger: Day One is upon us.

I'm off tomorrow (Thursday). And the next day. And the day after that. And the day after that one.

I wasn't fired. I just have four days off in a row. My beautiful wife is going to Georgia this weekend for a wedding and I am staying home to watch the kids. I've got ten bucks, a car whose front, right tire has developed a slow leak, and...that's about it. But that won't stop us from having the big time. We've got a nice library just around the corner and an excellent playground next to said library.

I've got a camera to document the fun and a couch to rescue me from extreme exhaustion when the sun goes down. I just hope I don't look too scary by Sunday night. I won't be shaving my face since I won't have to shave my face. Between Day One of not shaving my face and Day Four of not shaving my face, there's a big difference. Between Day Four of not shaving my face and Day Twenty of not shaving my face, there's not much difference at all. So much for the full beard. But I should have the Just Broke Out Of Prison And Am Hiding From The Law look down good.

I just polished off the last of the Guinness from the fridge. If Pops drops in this weekend, there should be an infusion of Sam Adams beers. Two per night will do just fine. With the kiddos in bed by nine each night, Comcast On Demand's BBC America offerings on the television ("telly" for you hardcore BBC-ers), and my stinky feet on the couch, this has the makings of a wonderful weekend of leisure. (When my wife's out of town, I usually just sleep on the couch. That bed is just way too big for one person.)

So, fellow bloggers of Nashville, what are y'all doing this weekend?

...And The Cradle Will Rock

As is obvious to regular readers, I'm on a Van Halen kick right now. What has surprised me is how much my daughter likes what I'm listening to.

We were outside playing with cars and such as the iPod played on shuffle in the window. When Van Halen songs came on, she would abandon what she was doing and go to the screen and listen.

Is this a great country or what?

Where else could you go from being an NYC paramedic to frontman for arguably the world's greatest rock band in just three short years?

In related news, some guy named Zakk is trying to break into showbiz, but Dave won't give him a break. Come on Dave, give him a break.

Jesca Hoop on KCRW, Jesca Hoop in Nashville

Wednesday at 9 A.M., September 19, Jesca Hoop will be on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic.

On October 29, she will play in my fair city of Nashville at the Exit/In. The saving up for admission starts now.

There's a lot to love here.

*Special request for Jesca's people:

If I keep talking about her on the blog, can I have a free ticket? I really miss working at a record store. I was always on the list at club shows.

I promised myself I wouldn't get excited.

Van Halen rehearsal clips here.

A Princess Contemplates Her Crown

Fisher's Mind

Is anyone more afraid of Peyton Manning than Coach Jeff Fisher? We hardly ever punt against the Colts. It's always punt fakes and go for it on 4th down when we play them. Watching that quick touchdown pass by Peyton as I typed this, I don't blame him.

I like Sprint's new ad, called "Manning's Mind," where he stands in a Salvador Dali-esque environment facing various threats and illusions (receiver Harrison is literally being surrounded by dolphins). I wonder if Fisher has nightmares like this, with Peyton Manning standing behind every door. Jeff opens one, Peyton throws a touchdown. Jeff opens another one, Peyton throws another touchdown.

Current score: Colts 6 (blocked extra point), Titans 3
We can't be settling for field goals against these guys.

Futile, but funny in retrospect.

I just spent a few minutes arguing with a two-year-old. She wanted her juice in the green cup. The green cup was dirty, but the purple cup was clean. She only wanted the green cup. I explained to her that it didn't matter what color the cup was, that the juice would taste just the same in the purple cup.

For my next worthless conversation, I'll discuss the writings of Bertrand Russell with the dog. At least she pays attention when I mention dogmatic doubt.

"I think we ought always to entertain our opinions with some measure of doubt. I shouldn't wish people dogmatically to believe any philosophy, not even mine."

"It is a waste of energy to be angry with a man who behaves badly, just as it is to be angry with a car that won't go."

"It has been said that man is a rational animal. All my life I have been searching for evidence which could support this."

Bertrand Russell (link)

Discovering Captain Jack (Not The Pirate)

Now that I'm all caught up on current episodes of Hotel Babylon (a show about my job that really gets it right), I have time to check out what else is on TV. I stayed up way too late the other night watching Torchwood on BBC America. I've never watched Doctor Who, but I've learned that this is a spinoff (and anagram) of that popular and long-running series.

Between this and my recent enjoyment of Philip K. Dick's wonderful stories, it's possible that I'm becoming a bit of a sci-fi fan.